New Methodology of Organic Electrochemical Synthesis - Fundamentals and Applications of Organic Electrochemistry - page 311

(7.1)
Quite recently, Nakata, Einaga and co-workers
achieved the electrochemical reduction of CO 2
in seawater using a BDD electrode under
ambient conditions to provide formaldehyde
selectively with high current efficiency (74%), as
shown in Eq. 7.2 [16]. The high current
efficiency is attributable to the wide potential
window and the sp 3 -bonded carbon of the BDD.
(7.2)
Cathodic reduction of CO has also been carried
out to form squaric (quadratic) acid, as shown
in Eq. 7.3 [17].
(7.3)
7.4 Environmental Cleanup
Electrochemical treatment involving anodic
decomposition is a highly promising method for
the reduction of toxic pollutants dissolved in
waste water. It is important to select the proper